Sandblasting Trailer Outdoors

tyhuck · August 31, 2011

Im wanting to sandblast a 16" livestock trailer and I am wondering what would be a good media to use. My main concerns are having something that is cheap, and can be sprayed outside without causing too much collateral damage (we will be blasting the trailer in the parking lot so cleanup of the media may not be entirely possible). I thought about steel slag or glass bead, but Im really not sure. I wouldnt normally worry about it if I were blasting in a cabinet since it reclaims and recirculates the media. Bt, being outside, we will lose most of the media. Any sugestions?

NitroCherokee · August 31, 2011

I would recommend Walnut Shells, not quite as "quick" as glass but not as big of a mess and a little more enviromently friendly if left in the parking lot

wavery · August 31, 2011

I used glass bead on my trailer. I just bought a big blue tarp (~24x30) and used the glass over & over. It worked really well.

Clean the trailer with TSP before sand-blasting, to remove the grease and crap. If you blast it with road grease on there, it will just force the grease into the metal and the paint won't adhere properly.. Be sure to be ready with the primer the minute that you are done blasting. Just wipe it down with a tack rag or a rag with acetone on it. If you leave it for a few hours, it will already start to rust.

I used to take my dune-buggies to Pismo Beach. After a few trips, I had to sand-blast the trailers due to the sea salt rust. After a few times of doing it, I found out the importance of getting the primer on there right away, then getting paint on the primer as soon as possible. Once I got it down right and used 3-coats of paint, I didn't have to do it again.

tyhuck · August 31, 2011

I would recommend Walnut Shells, not quite as "quick" as glass but not as big of a mess and a little more enviromently friendly if left in the parking lot

Will this remove rust. I know people use it for soft surfaces so I was worried about it being too soft to remove the rust with the paint. The rusted spots are the main reason Im not going to invest in a soda blaster at the shop.

blacksierra01 · August 31, 2011

Ive always used silica sand, it does make a bit of mess, but should easily sweep up on a parking lot, not sure on price, but it works great.

dodge123 · September 2, 2011

I have been told soda blasting doesnt remove heavy rust well and its better suited for thin material like sheet metal as it builds less heat by way of friction and water can be used to additionally cool the metal. I had it done but on clean painted 16ga steel. I would go with the steel or sand like you said. Have you thought about setting up a plastic tarp around the project to try and recycle the media? Additionally if you go to a local construction materials testing laboratory they may have brass sieves they use for soil testing they are supposed to throw away when they can no longer pass calibration. They are perfect for recycling the blast media assuming you are able to get the higher number of openings per square inch sieves.